Nova Scotia Revealed film crew visit Ship Hector

PICTOU – Nova Scotia is full of hidden gems, and there’s a personality behind each one.

Luke Conrad, left, and Jock Hiltz talk about the Ship Hector and its history during a film shoot at the Heritage Quay on Wednesday as part of travel documentary series Nova Scotia Revealed. AMANDA JESS – THE NEWS

That’s what a comedy and musical duo and the Nova Scotia Revealed film crew are out to prove.

“It always eventually comes back to interesting people,” said Jock Hiltz, one of the main characters of the travel documentary series.

Clerisy Entertainment, a production company based out of Dartmouth, brought the show to Pictou on Wednesday to explore the Hector Heritage Quay.

With a premise of exploring Nova Scotia, taking in ‘the birthplace of New Scotland’ only makes sense, director Dale Leckie said.

“I knew nothing about Pictou,” Hiltz, originally from Chester, said.

He noted that people he’s met from the area may not always have positive things to say about the town, but coming in as an outsider, he found it beautiful.

For the quay, local exposure is just as important as international attention, Hector Quay Society chair Anne Emmett said.

“More and more people are taking staycations,” she said, stressing the need to raise the profile of the Ship Hector throughout the province.

Having been featured in many television programs in the past, Emmett suspects it’s the tall ship that fascinates people, and the historical aspect, adding that there’s been an increase in tourism for the purpose of tracking genealogy.

The aim of Nova Scotia Revealed, now in its second season on Eastlink Television, is to hitchhike from the tip of Yarmouth to the most northern part of Cape Breton, and everything in between.

Hiltz and Luke Conrad have already built a brand around themselves after getting rejected from several reality TV shows, including Canadian Idol and The Dragon’s Den.

Their adventure has taken them to a recycling plant, dairy farms, a hot air balloon, a circus school, a special effects artist, coast guard college, a classic barber shop and an island off Yarmouth once considered an independent nation named Outer Baldonia by three fishermen, to name a few.

Dave MacGregor, formerly of New Glasgow, has been researching locations for months, choosing visually interesting places with a story.

“If I found it interesting, I figure other people will too,” MacGregor said, adding that he believes Nova Scotians don’t need to leave the province to discover cool places.

While they’re on the road, they often get suggestions as well, the crew noted.

They’ve already been on the road for six weeks for season two, racking up 12-hour or more days.

They’re hoping to have the latest season ready to air in mid-October, while last season is on Eastlink On Demand as well as video website Vimeo.

Luke Conrad, left, and Jock Hiltz talk about the Ship Hector and its history during a film shoot at the Heritage Quay on Wednesday as part of travel documentary series Nova Scotia Revealed. AMANDA JESS – THE NEWS